Forbidden Fruit
by Quirky Del
Summary: One shot...We're living on borrowed time, you know...


**A one shot that was lingering in my odd brain...**

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There was a loud crash outside. The two lovers froze, tangled together in a mess of limbs. They each waited with baited breath, staring at the closed door; praying that it didn't open. After a moment the man disengaged himself and rose from the rickety old bed. The mattress squeaked in protest as he got up and he made his way over to the window.

"Jus' some neighbourhood kids..." He turned back around to face her.

"We have to stop..." Her eyes were wild and reddened by too many tears shed.

"I'm not givin' ya up." His voice was firm but there was a tinge of desperation laced with it.

"He'll kill you. You know he will..." She flung herself on him, grasping his open shirt in her tiny hands.

"Calm down, it won't come to dat." He looked at her, the intensity in his gaze shooting right through her.

"You know he'll go crazy when he finds out!" Her knuckles were now turning white, her hold so tight on him that the skin was stretched taunt.

"Well, he ain't nevah gonna find out." He gently moved his hands over hers and pried her fingers free. "Come ovah here." He led her back over to the bed, pulling her in his lap.

"What if that had been him?" her soft voice wafted across the thick air.

"But it wasn't."

"But what if was? What if it had been him outside?"

"Ya worry too damn much."

"We can't hide this forever..."

"I don't plan to." He snaked his hand up the back of her lacy camisole and began to rub soothing circles on her back. His rough fingers circling her smooth skin gave her goosebumps. She finally started to relax in him a little, her body bending into his.

"Alec..." she spoke his given name, she was the only one privileged enough to use it. "What are we going to do?"

"I'm gonna take ya away, baby...away from dis hell hole."

"When?" she played along. They seemed to have this conversation daily, it was a script and they both knew their lines.

"Soon. And we'll live like kings, ya an' me will..." he bent his head down to kiss her neck tenderly. "We'll have a nice cottage, jus' da way ya want it...:" He trailed another kiss down to her collarbone. "Wit' four fancy carriages..." another kiss followed. "And swanky dinners, anywhere ya wanted..." Kiss. "Servants to do all ya' biddin'..." Kiss. "Hot watah all da time..." Kiss. "An' no more runnin' away from nothin'..." He turned her in his arms so she was flush against him and they lost themselves in passionate abandon.

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"It's gettin' late." He was standing at the window smoking a cigarette.

She nodded reluctantly. "Yeah, he'll be getting home soon." Her tone was void of any emotion.

He took the last drag and flicked his smoke away out of the open recess. He closed the pane and sat back down next to her.

"Ya bettah get dressed." He remarked, only half dressed himself. He reached over to retrieve his shirt off the ground and began to methodically button it up.

"I can't keep doing this," she croaked.

He stopped what he was doing and reached a hand out to cup her cheek.

"It won't be fah always..." He leaned in and rested his forehead against hers.

She wrapped her arms around him, her ivory sheet that had been draped over her fell in the process. "I love you. You know that, don't you?"

He cracked a smile. "Yeah, I know. I love ya, too, baby."

She let herself stay like that a moment, their faces so close that their slow breaths mingled. She reluctantly stopped the moment when she pulled away and got up. She strode over and picked up her skirt and blouse off of the worn floor. She dressed in silence, staring off into the wall as she did so. She fastened the last hook on her skirt before she looked back over at her companion.

"Well, I guess it's dat time again..." He gazed at her like a man dying of thirst, his orbs wide with want and regret.

"I guess so," she answered robotically.

He strode over to her and placed a kiss on her forehead. His hand turned the door knob and he was about to walk back out – leaving again, like he had done a thousand times before. The setting sun burned on his face and something suddenly seemed to erupt inside of him. He crossed back in, slamming the door shut behind him.

"What?" she jumped, startled.

"No, I ain't gonna do it again. I _can't_ do it again!"

"What are you talking about?" There was that passive tone again, the one that she always took when it was time for them to part.

"You're comin' wit me dis time." His voice was eerily calm, but determination rang out from it.

She shook her head disbelieving. "You can't be serious..."

"Damn right, I'm serious. An' we're leavin' right now." He grabbed her hand, but she stayed rooted to the spot.

"Alec...where would we go?"

"Anywhere."

"What are we gonna do?"

"Anythin'. I don't care, but I can't stand leavin' ya here anuddah minute. Da thought of his hands on ya, of him touchin' ya...it ain't gonna happen again." There was a feral gleam in his eyes that she had never seen.

She couldn't believe it. This was the moment that she had been waiting for for over six months! Six months since he first came home with her for what would end up being their daily rendezvous. That first morning together after shameless flirting that had gone on for almost a year. She tore herself away from her thoughts and snapped her attention back on him.

"Ya comin'." It wasn't a question, it was more of a demand. Had she not been entirely wishing to go with him she may have been offended at his domineering attitude.

"I'm scared...my legs feel like lead and I can't seem to move."

"Fine den. I'll jus' carry ya." He bent over and picked her up, flinging her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. He opened the door again with his free hand and took them outside, slamming it back shut with his foot.

His pace was brisk and they received a mixture of strange glares and laughs from the spectators on the street.

"When are you going to put me down?"

"When I feels like it."

She sighed. "He's going to look for me. He'll take it as an insult to his pride that I left."

"We'll worry 'bout dat when da time comes."

"He's like an ox, how can you be so calm about everything all of the time!" Frustration was rising within her, mingled with fear.

"Don't do any good to worry. 'Sides, I ain't a spring chicken meself. I been around. He's not gonna wanna mess wit' me."

"What if he kills you?" was her strangled response.

"Den I'll die a happy man, huh?"

"How can make jokes at a time like this?"

"A time like dis is da times ya need jokes da most." He still had her flung over his shoulder and was carrying her effortlessly.

"Put me down, the blood is starting to rush to my head..."

He chuckled. "Good, maybe it'll do ya some help..."

She snapped one of his bright suspenders as hard as she could. This only made him laugh again, thus infuriating her even more.

"I can't believe we did this...we finally broke away."

"Why da hell did ya marry dat bum in da foyst place?"

"I told you all of this before," she answered in a pained voice.

"Well, ya don't have to evah think about it no more. New start, huh?" He still hadn't broken his stride.

"I hope so." They continued walking in silence – well, he continued walking; she continued being carried. After quite some time they apparently reached their destination and he finally put her back down on her feet. She looked around at her surroundings.

"This is where we're staying?"

"Yeah, ya know he won't nevah look fah us here."

"Aren't you scared even a little?"

"Nah," he dismissed, though she knew better. He was no fool and he knew her husband's – she shuddered at the word – reputation. He was a professional boxer and a particularly mean and foul one at that.

"We're living on borrowed time, you know."

He shook his head. "Doncha worry 'bout nothin'. I'm gonna take good care of him so he don't botha us none..."

She felt an involuntary shiver run through her body at that remark. "What do you mean by that?"

"Sssh. Doncha think about it, baby. Let's just enjoy our foyst night of freedom togeddah, huh?" He put his hand under her chin and brought her face closer to kiss her.

She melted into him, trying desperately not to think about what that comment meant. If he was planning on doing what she thought he was then she would rather not know. After all, didn't they always say ignorance was bliss? She let herself go in his arms, not worrying about tomorrow for once.

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**Hmmm, I really like parts of this, not really sure about other parts. What do you guys think?**

**PS – Yes, I intentionally left the exact name of our boy out; you can picture who you want. Though, I had a very definite idea of who it was in my head as I wrote. It would be interesting if any of you pictured someone different...You all probably knew who it was anyway, hmm? Heehee. It's probably pretty obvious. Anyway, hope you liked it.**


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